Don't call it a lure, call it an incentive.
As Travel & Tours World points out, the main reason for the increase in tourist numbers to Italy is due to its visa-free policy for 64 other countries.
This includes the United States, the United Kingdom, and nearly a quarter of all countries in the world.
The policy includes the Schengen Area, a group of mostly European countries. The visa waiver policy applies to both business and leisure travel.
Not that Italy needed the help: the country expects to welcome 134 million tourists in 2023, translating into more than 450 million overnight stays.
The list of countries that do not require a visa to travel to Italy includes Albania, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, South Korea, Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, United Arab Emirates, Georgia, Japan, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Solomon Islands, Israel, Kiribati, Kosovo, Malaysia, Macau, North Macedonia, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, and the United States. Lisian, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Nauru, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis (Saint Kitts and Nevis), United Kingdom, Samoa, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Seychelles, Singapore, United States, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Taiwan, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Ukraine, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, France.
US citizens are already allowed to enter Italy for tourism and business purposes without a visa.
Last year, tourism generated more than 215 billion euros in profits for the Italian economy, a figure that is expected to rise to 223 billion euros in 2024. As a result, employment in the travel sector is expected to grow by a further 100,000, to more than 3 million.
This is despite the introduction of new tourist taxes in some cities, such as Venice.
2025 will be a landmark year, and tourism is expected to boom.
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